According to the authors of the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, 12 healthy volunteers who gave oral and written consent participated in a survey on the effects alcohol has on the Central Nervous System for duration of 2 days. There were 6 males & 6 females who age ranged from 18 through 39 years of age. The CNS includes the brain and the spinal cord. The most important parts of the CNS are protected by bones. The skull protects the brain and the spine protects the spinal cord. The nervous system is made up of the CNS and the peripheral nervous system (PNS).
The PNS includes the neurons, or nerves, that form a network that carries information to and from the neck and arms, trunk, legs, skeletal muscles, and internal organs. Neurons can send nerve signals to and from the brain at up to 200 miles per hour. When the nervous system is working smoothly, it is amazingly efficient. The CNS is responsible for taking in information through the senses, controlling motor function, as well as thinking, understanding, and reasoning. It also controls emotion. According to the authors alcohol is a depressant of the CNS, meaning it slows activity down.
Many people think that alcohol is a “pick-me-up” experience because, initially, when people begin to drink, it causes them to become more animated and less reserved. But the opposite occurs as they continue to drink and more alcohol enters the brain. The degree to which brain activity slows down depends on how much, and how fast, a person drinks. Some effects people experience include: Altered speech, hazy thinking, slower reaction time, dulled hearing, impaired vision, weakened muscles, foggy memory, and decreased sex drive. According to the author aspirin is used by doctors to treat pain, fever, and inflammation.
Also used at times to treat or prevent heart attacks, strokes and chest pain. He says to avoid alcohol use while taking aspirin because it alcohol can intensify the effects and can cause fatal outcomes. It can cause several possible effects on the Central Nervous System. Confusion and increased confusion, hallucinations, lethargy, drowsiness, headache, and dizziness. More severe effects include seizures, cerebral edema, cranial hemorrhage, Reye’s syndrome, vomiting and neurologic dysfunction. Lidocaine is a local anesthetic. According to the author it works by blocking nerve signals in the body.
It helps to reduce pain or discomfort caused by invasive medical procedures such as surgery, needle punctures, or catheter insertion. Possible effects on the CNS include but not limited to changes in consciousness, fainting, nausea, vomiting, blurred vision, yawning, restlessness, tinnitus, drowsiness, vertigo, sensation of heat, cold or numbness, twitching, tremors, lightheadedness, and seizures. Morphine is an opioid pain medication. According to the authors It’s used by doctors to treat long term pain. Using alcohol with morphine can cause dangerous effect or death.
The effects it can cause on the CNS include but not limited to blurred vision, itching, numbness, sedation, confusion, fainting, nervousness, and tremors in arms or legs. Painful urination, loss of consciousness, change in balance, vertigo, sleeplessness, delusional, insomnia, and memory problems. Ketamine is used for anesthesia during surgical procedures. Effects on the CNS according to the author’s include but limited to, blurred vision, nausea, vomiting, it can also change the mental state such as hallucinations, increased confusion, nightmares, and tinnitus.
Succinylcholine is a depolarizing muscle relaxant. According to the author it works by keeping the muscles from contracting which cause paralysis of the muscles in the face and those used to breathe and more. The effects that this medication has on the CNS include pain, and jaw rigidity. References American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Inc. (2006, April 1). Morphine Oral. Medline Plus. Retrieved April 19, 2007. http://www. nlm. nih. gov/medlineplus/druginfo/medmaster/a682133. html. American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, Inc.
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